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Sindos : early bronze age pottery deposit

• Ανδρέου, Στέλιος

This article is devoted to the publication of the contents of a pit investigated during the excavation of the well-known Late Archaic cemetery in the industrial zone of Sindos. These contents consist of a homogeneous and fairly well-preserved assemblage of prehistoric pottery dating from a period that is not at present adequately known in Central Macedonia. The morphological and technological features of the pots are analysed with the aim of investigating possible relations between technology and use, the date of the assemblage is discussed, and its characteristic features are determined with reference to similar kinds of assemblages of this period from northern Greece. The possibility is also examined that the finds represent the waisters from a pit kiln.The irregular round prehistoric pit, which was partly destroyed by a twin pit dating from the historical period. It lies on the southern slope of a low hill a short distance from four pottery kilns of Classical da te, and several hundred metres from other traces of prehistoric occupation. The undisturbed part of the fill of the pit consisted of ash, burnt earth, lumps of fired daub, and a large quantity of pottery. Almost all of the pottery exhibited to a greater or lesser degree the effects of missfiring. It has been calculated that the prehistoric pit probably contained between fourteen and seventeen almost complete vases of different shapes and sizes, and several smaller fragments of pots. All of them seem to have been made of non-calcareous clays and, with the exception of a very small proportion, belonged to fabrics containing similar non-plastic materials. A number of variations can be detected in the fabric however, as well as in the manufacturing technique and treatment of the surface. This variability appears to be associated with specific vase shapes. In the assemblage examined here very small and very large vases are rare. The bulk, open and closed shapes of various types, seem to fall into two groups on the basis of their capacity, which ranges from 1.5 to 8.5 litres. In the third part of the study, the pottery of Sindos is compared to other Early Bronze Age groups from northern Greece, and a date in the middle of the 3rd millenium, between 2700 and 2300 BC, is suggested. An examination of the use follows, based on their technological characteristics together with details of the shapes. Finally, the questions of the interpretation of the pit and the character of the pottery assemblage are discussed. After having examined of various alternatives, we found plausible that the assemblage was probably associated with an early pottery pit kiln, where fuel and pottery were being placed in the same space.

• History and Archaeology

• Αρχαιολογία
• Ανασκαφές (Αρχαιολογία)
• Πολιτισμός, Βυζαντινός

Το άρθρο περιέχεται στο τεύχος: Μέρος Α'-Μελέτες, Περιέχει σχέδια, πίνακες και συντομογραφίες